We’ve watched in slow motion as Russia has built up over 150,000 troops on and within Ukraine’s borders. Russia has threatened war, likely imminent, prompting the Ukrainian government to call on NATO and the United States to help defend its sovereignty.
Forty years ago, defending a sovereign country from Russian aggression was practically the mission statement for U.S. foreign policy. Now?
We get only the Biden administration’s bland assurances that they will handle Russian aggression. Sanctions are coming, they say. Just don’t ask the administration to send soldiers to deter a Russian invasion of Ukraine. Oh, and some sanctions might be a bit too extreme, so they likely won’t be imposed even in the worst scenario.
With Vladimir Putin shredding the Minsk accords, as he did on Sunday by recognizing the autonomy of breakaway regions in southeastern Ukraine, we face a very serious situation. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not arguing that the U.S. should be tripping over itself for a chance to go to war with Russia. My point is that we should be doing more to defend the sovereignty of a NATO-aligned country under threat of invasion.
The White House has failed this test for freedom.
Almost immediately after this crisis commenced, the White House rapidly began pushing against the idea of sending troops to Ukraine. Of course, we already had a small contingent of soldiers in Ukraine. But now, even those training forces are being withdrawn. And we know that Putin is unafraid of our sanctions threats. Has this rhetoric deterred him? Of course not. Why don’t you ask the Ukrainian soldiers and civilians now under Russian orchestrated artillery fire along the Ukraine contact line.
With the U.S. and NATO failing to guarantee Ukraine’s safety, others are picking up the slack. U.S. and British military veterans have traveled to Ukraine to train civilians and evacuate those who could not leave on their own. But we must ask: Why must independent citizens do more to protect the Ukrainian people than our immensely powerful government? Our government that presents itself as the leader of the free world?
If I could, I would be on a plane to Kyiv immediately. Unfortunately, I have a pregnant wife at home and I can’t make that sacrifice. But I shouldn’t have to. I gave this country four years of my life to defend our values. Sadly, the commander in chief has decided that those values aren’t worth defending.
Philip Reichert is a former U.S. Army Intelligence Analyst.
